Remember When...

... John McCain's big criticism of Barack Obama was that he didn't take enough foreign trips -- especially to Iraq -- and how he hadn't been adequately tested on this big stage of CODELing. What happened to that? Now the critique is that too many Germans are interested in hearing him talk since, I guess, all else being equal we'd rather have a president foreigners find repugnant. But seriously, what's next?

John McCain swore up and down that if Obama went to Iraq he'd find that the facts on the ground contradicted his Iraq position. Instead we found that in the modern day it's possible to form opinions about countries you haven't visited recently and that Iraqi leaders are broadly supportive of his approach to Iraq while universally condemning McCain's vision of a perpetual American military presence there. Meanwhile, meetings with leaders in other countries in the region seem to have gone fine and we're about to find out that Obama's the kind of president who'd start off with enough initial popularity amidst our key allies that he'd be in a position to reinvigorate the transatlantic partnership. All-in-all, a pretty successful trip but especially successful when you consider that pressuring Obama into taking it was the McCain campaign's big plan. Meanwhile, the polls keep showing an Obama win and at some point I think the notion that he "should" be winning by more has to stop giving conservatives much comfort.

Comments

True enough, although I think there is something to the critique of having a political rally in a foreign country. Meeting with foreign leaders isn't a big deal, but isn't a big rally a bit weird? Why not hold more of those over here, in the US?

All in all, though, I don't think it is going to make that much difference. Most voters aren't paying attention at this point anyway, and probably won't care when they start looking at the candidates seriously.

Posted by B. Minich | July 24, 2008 10:46 AM

There is a certain breed of political strategist who think a campaign is just a series of discrete newscyles, and the goal is just to win as many newscycles as possible. There is very little evidence these people are right, and they end up making mistakes like this all the time (ie, I am sure McCain's strategists told him they were winning the "Obama hasn't visited Iraq" issue during the relevant newscycle, with little or no thought about what might happen if Obama actually visited Iraq).

B. Minich,

Obama is making a public speech--it just turns out lots of Germans would like to hear it. And many Americans before Obama have made public speeches while visiting foreign countries, so I don't understand why you think that is "weird". And it turns out that making speeches while visiting foreign countries doesn't prevent those people from also making speeches when they are back in the United States.

So, unless you are arguing American politicians should never visting foreign countries, I don't see what is wrong with those politicians making some speeches while they are in those foreign countries.

Posted by DTM | July 24, 2008 10:56 AM

Have you read Broder's whiny op-ed today? He's way bent out of shape that Obama's trip has gone well, that the Iraqi leader agrees with Obama on the need to remove U.S. troops, and that all of this is bad for his candidate, the Very Serious John McCain. It's really quite brazen in its pettyness. And Broder conveniently leaves out all the huffing and puffing by the GOP and journalists that Obama hadn't been overseas. And now that he is, they're whining about that, too.

Posted by Bulworth | July 24, 2008 11:01 AM

The Republican's are bankrupt. They have no platform that will appeal to the people of this country and the observation was made, and it's struck me as still true, that for a lot of people the Democratic primary was so huge because the decision has been made by a huge swath of people that they're going democratic this year. They don't want to be in Iraq. They don't trust the Republican's to fix the economy. And Katrina has branded Republicans as incompetant given Bush's response.

So Obama, given the lies on line and racists, has some handicaps aggravated by the fact that he hasn't been on the national stage a long time. But the fundamental thing that a lot of Republicans don't realize: he's running the same platform Clinton or Edwards would have run because it's the mainstream democratic thought and the demcorats have it right on Iraq and Afghanistan right now.

The Republican establishment as a whole has yet to admit that they're wrong. That's what's keeping them down right now.

Posted by Rhoda | July 24, 2008 11:17 AM

I find this tin foil irritates my scalp. I think conservatives have a plan for success in November and it's extrajudicial in the extreme.

Posted by steve duncan | July 24, 2008 11:23 AM

Have you read Broder's whiny op-ed today?

I thought it was pretty good. He ends with:

"McCain's frustration at the turn of events is something he cannot conceal. The domestic economy was always going to be a problem for him -- even before gasoline hit $4 a gallon. But he had a credible position to argue on national security issues and a record that was consistent and in some respects prescient.

But now the ground has shifted -- and his opponent was right where he needed to be to capture the advantage. July has been a cruel month for McCain."

During the primary, Obama supporters - i.e. cultists, Obamabots, etc. - argued that Obama, Hillary and Edwards were pretty similar ideologically, but Obama had the best chance of winning the general election. So far we've been proven correct. McCain is getting his ass handed to him, and because of his temperament, this beatdown may cause him to just continue making gaffe after gaffe.

I'm hoping Obama does sort of Khrushchev denouncing Stalin speeech in Berlin where he talks about the bad thing the US did during the Cold War to other countries, and then mentions defeating the Soviets (Stalin did defeat Hitler) and says the US has gotten better and will be even better if he's elected. He wouldn't mention the war on terror by name, just the Cold War. Perhaps it's a bit much to hope for.

Posted by Peter K. | July 24, 2008 11:28 AM

Meeting with foreign leaders isn't a big deal, but isn't a big rally a bit weird?

The next time thousands of Americans line up to see the Pope, I look forward to similar complaints from you.

Posted by Notorious P.A.T. | July 24, 2008 11:32 AM

We have the theme, "foreigners like him, therefor he must be a traitor", that the Republicans will try to play. This will clearly play to their base, but none of these people were going to vote for Obama anyway.

Posted by bigTom | July 24, 2008 11:36 AM

The next time thousands of Americans line up to see the Pope, I look forward to similar complaints from you.

So Obama IS the messiah after all!!!

Posted by drjimcooper | July 24, 2008 11:38 AM

Actually, the Pope gets much better crowds than the Messiah.

Assuming, of course, that dude I see each day on that one street corner really is the Messiah.

Posted by DTM | July 24, 2008 11:43 AM

I didn't think people would try it, but apparently being extremely popular overseas is now on the list of 'troubling' things with leading in polls, being popular in the US, having large rallies that people want to attend, giving good speeches, and having a sense of graphic design.

I eagerly await high convention ratings and election winning as being yet another worrisome feather in Barack Obama's worrisome cap.

http://thesebastards.blogspot.com/

Posted by Matthew | July 24, 2008 11:49 AM

Actually, and this is a lesson all Americans need to learn really quickly, the reason America lost World War II is that FDR never went to Europe or the Pacific to talk to the Generals.

Posted by Josh SN | July 24, 2008 12:23 PM

If McCain doesn't think we need Old Europe, then why is he eating Old European food today at Schmidt's Sausage Haus in Columbus, Ohio?

I am not kidding, btw:

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/07/mccain_to_be_in_german_restaur.php

Posted by ohiomeister | July 24, 2008 2:53 PM

I don't mind if McCain eats sausages. He's made it fairly clear that as President, he'd continue the disastrous policies of GW, so maybe he's found his niche out there in Columbus. I hope he spends the next four years eating sausages, thus benefiting all Americans.

Posted by NYC Educator | July 25, 2008 11:23 AM

John McCain said he would rather make a speech in Germany after he is president, not as a candidate. Is this because he can't draw a crowd of 20,000 instead of 200,000. What a comparison he would create!

Posted by Helena | July 25, 2008 11:45 AM

John McCain said he would rather make a speech in Germany after he is president, not as a candidate. Is this because he can't draw a crowd of 20,000 instead of 200,000. What a comparison he would create!

Posted by Helena | July 25, 2008 11:47 AM

Didn't McCain go on a taxpayer subsidizes junket to Mexico to rally the border jumpers to his cause? It seems the standard Republican "do as I say, not as I do" rhetoric. Like the gay bashing boy predators and the multiple marriages adulterous defenders of marriage, and the draft dodging coward harks.

Posted by Phlorescent Center | July 25, 2008 2:16 PM

Didn't McCain go on a taxpayer subsidizes junket to Mexico to rally the border jumpers to his cause? It seems the standard Republican "do as I say, not as I do" rhetoric. Like the gay bashing boy predators and the multiple marriages adulterous defenders of marriage, and the draft dodging coward harks.

Posted by Phlorescent Center | July 25, 2008 2:20 PM

We live in a Democracy. In a democracy, people are allowed to vote with their feet. It's not Obama's fault that people want to meet and see him. McCain seems to be blaming everyone else except for himself for the relatively weak press coverage he's gotten over the past week. No one is holding him back from staging his own big event. No one is telling him to shack up at Sausage House moping while Obama is making the speech of a lifetime. Take some responsibility for your campaign, McCain. If you want a big crowd, then ask your campaign to organize a venue for your next speech, but certainly don't criticize another candidate for choosing a venue that best suits his style.

And finally, stop being such a hypocrite. First McCain criticizes Obama for not making enough foreign trips, and then, when Obama takes him up on his challenge, he criticizes him for it. Make up your mind!

McCain has made plenty of foreign campaign trips on his own -- to Canada, Columbia, and Iraq. He's not one to be telling another candidate what to do.

Posted by Ross | July 25, 2008 5:12 PM

We live in a Democracy. In a democracy, people are allowed to vote with their feet. It's not Obama's fault that people want to meet and see him. McCain seems to be blaming everyone else except for himself for the relatively weak press coverage he's gotten over the past week. No one is holding him back from staging his own big event. No one is telling him to shack up at Sausage House moping while Obama is making the speech of a lifetime. Take some responsibility for your campaign, McCain. If you want a big crowd, then ask your campaign to organize a venue for your next speech, but certainly don't criticize another candidate for choosing a venue that best suits his style.

And finally, stop being such a hypocrite. First McCain criticizes Obama for not making enough foreign trips, and then, when Obama takes him up on his challenge, he criticizes him for it. Make up your mind!

McCain has made plenty of foreign campaign trips on his own -- to Canada, Columbia, and Iraq. He's not one to be telling another candidate what to do.

Posted by Ross | July 25, 2008 5:14 PM